All of them reached their biggest success away from San Antonio. But both players and Fitzsimmons all had memorable but short stays with the Spurs.

Rodman was a member of five NBA championship teams and led the NBA in rebounding in seven consecutive seasons, including both seasons he was with San Antonio in 1994 and 1995.

The 6-foot-8 power forward helped lead the team to the playoffs in both seasons, although his meltdown over off-the-court activities helped lead to the Spurs’ defeat in the 1995 Western Finals to Houston, despite having the league’s best record during the regular season.

Larry Brown hoped that Cheeks would bring veteran leadership to a team with rookies David Robinson and Sean Elliott when he was acquired from Philadelphia in 1989. But he never became acclimated to San Antonio, living in a hotel the entire time he was in the Alamo City.

Cheeks was swapped to New York after playing 50 games on that team, averaging 10.9 points and six assists while he played with them.

Fitzsimmons had coached four other NBA teams when he arrived in San Antonio in 1984. He led the Spurs to two playoff appearances in his two seasons coaching them, but is most widely remembered as the coach who arranged for the trade of George Gervin to Chicago.

During his two seasons coaching in San Antonio Fitzsimmons was 78-92. He later finished his career with five-plus seasons at Phoenix, where he resigned in 1996 after losing his first eight games of the season. He later became a broadcaster for the Suns before his death in 2004.

Among the other nominees who were announced Tuesday include Chris Mullin, Reggie Miller, Don Nelson, Tex Winter, Maurice Lucas, Spencer Haywood, Rick Pitino and Dick Bavetta.

Voters for the Hall of Fame — their names are not made public — will narrow this group and others down to a list of finalists announced over the All-Star weekend. Then the final voting takes place (candidates have to be on 18 of the 24 ballots) and those being inducted will be announced during the Final Four.

All three former Spurs in this class have their merits. But it’s a deep group and it might be tough for any of them to earn their way into the hall during this class.

Spurs players and coaches who have earned their way into the Naismith Hall of Fame include Gervin, Robinson, Dominique Wilkins, Moses Malone and Brown.

And I’ve got a question for Spurs Nation. Which other players and coaches associated with the Spurs — both past and present — deserve to eventually be named to the Naismith Hall of Fame?